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Myanmar Promises Action to Combat Police Brutality of Rohingya Minority; Trump's International Diplomacy by Twitter; Israeli Attorney General Investigates Allegations Prime Minister Potentially Receiving Illegal Benefits from Foreign Businesses. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired January 03, 2017 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:00:30] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong and welcome to News Stream.

International diplomacy by Twitter. The U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes to social media to criticize North Korea and China.

The manhunt continues in Turkey for suspect in the New Year identified and more people are

arrested in connection with the attack.

And Myanmar promises to take action after a disturbing video emerges of police brutality against Rohingya Muslims.

In just weeks, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will be in charge of the Oval Office. And he is already giving us a taste of how he might approach

international relations on his favorite platform, of course Twitter.

At first he challenged North Korean Leader Kim Jung-un's New Year's speech saying the country's claim that it will have a ballistic missile that will

reach the U.S., quote, "won't happen." And then then he flips the blame over to China saying Beijing isn't doing enough to reign in Pyongyang.

Now, analysts say it is unlikely North Korea will back off.

It claims it conducted two nuclear tests last year and fired off several missiles despite repeated condemnation from other nations.

Saima Mohsin has more now from Seoul.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kristie, President-elect Donald Trump says it won't happen. Now we don't know whether he's

referring to the fact that he believes North Korea doesn't have those capabilities or indeed if he thinks

that the United States will be able to counter any attempts to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile.

What we do know, of course, as you and I have been discussing before, is that North Korea did launch a satellite in February 2016, which could have

been a guise for launching a long range missile. It certainly needs similar technology.

And in April, Kim Jong-un inspected a new engine for an intercontinental ballistic missile. And at the time, he warned that it would be capable of

reaching his enemies, including the U.S. mainland.

Now, an intercontinental ballistic missile, of course, is one that goes beyond 5,500 kilometers. Now, we also know that the U.S. is talking to

South Korea to install a SAAD anti-missile defense system somewhere in South Korea to counter any kind of missile launch from

Pyongyang, but those are only applicable to short and medium range missiles, which we also know North Korea has. Is it capable of bringing

down intercontinental ballistic missile, and does King Jong-un even have one? Well, he's determined, he says, according to a number of defectors,

most recently Thae Yong-ho, the former deputy ambassador to London, saying that he's determined to complete his nuclear ambitions by the end of 2017

when Donald Trump will be in the White House -- Kristie.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: All right, Saima Mohsin there.

Now China is also taking issue with Trump's tweets. Matt Rivers joins us now for more from Beijing. And, Matt, Donald Trump has condemned China yet

again, but this time for failing to reign in North Korea. So, how is Beijing responding?

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Beijing is very practiced at respond to go this kind of criticism from Donald Trump because

frankly, that is the same criticism that we've hear from the president for well over a year now. He says that China should be doing more, using its

economic to get North Korea to scale back that nuclear weapons development program. So, what you heard from Beijing today is the same thing they've

been saying, that they believe that they are doing enough already, that as a member with veto power of the UN security council they actually helped

draft two different sets of sanctions last year imposed against North Korea near here develop weapons program.

What you hear from Beijing is they believe they've been doing enough already. As a member with veto power of the UN Security Council, they

represented draft two different seconds of sanctions last year imposed against North Korea and that they are actually shouldering more of the load

than most other countries in the world when it comes to inflicting economic sanctions on North Korea.

So China says it's doing enough already. Many people would say that China doesn't actually enforce those sanctions the way it should and that it

actually has a strategic interest in keeping Kim Jong-un regime stable, because of perceived threats from the United States in this part of the

world.

But the fact remains that there remains a big difference. Donald Trump says that China is not

doing enough, and China says we are.

[08:05:11] LU STOUT: And this is the second time Trump has said that China is not doing enough, not using its leverage to reign in Pyongyang. But how

much influence does China really have here?

RIVERS: Well, it kind of depends on who you ask. The fact of the matter is that China does have economic leverage in a major way over North Korea.

It is its number one trading partner by far. It provides vast amounts of aid in the form of food and fuel. And so it does have economic leverage.

And whether you can use that economic leverage to force the Kim Jong-un regime to stop its weapons program is the argument that Donald Trump makes.

But many other people will tell you, including China, that you can't sanction your way out of this problem. And no matter what sanctions do, no

matter what China threatens to do economically, the Kim Jong-un regime fundamentally sees this weapons development program as critical to their

future survival. And so no matter what sanctions are put into place, no matter what China does economically, the only way you could potentially get

Pyongyang to curb its regime is to engage directly with Kim Jong-un and his top diplomats. Whether that will ever happen down the road, Kristie,

certainly a very open question at this point.

LU STOUT: All right, Matt Rivers live from Beijing for us. Thank you, Matt.

It is worth remembering that late last year, North Korea was hit with the toughest UN Security Council sanctions yet over its nuclear program. It

included a cap on coal, its main export, and bans on moving copper, nickel, silver, and zinc. It is likely to cost North Korea some $800 million a

year.

And there's also a ban on another moneymaker: statues. Pyongyang has developed quite the reputation for its art, drawing plenty of business from

some South African leaders.

And these measures, they build on the original sanctions, which require all countries to inspect cargo going to and from North Korea. There's also a

ban on aviation fuel, which could be converted for weapons production.

Now earlier, I spoke with Tong Zhao, a nuclear and security expert at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy. And I started by asking him

whether sanctions will really deter Kim Jong-un.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TONG ZHAO, ASSOCIATE, CARNEGIE-TSINGHUA CENTER FOR GLOBAL POLICY: Well, China is currently implementing the most recent UN Security Council

resolution 23-21. And one important element of that resolution is for China to considerably cut down its co-import from North Korea.

And China is already doing that. Since December of 2016, China has suspended co-import from North Korea based on some reports. to it provides

vast amounts of ate in the form of food and fuel.

However, still there is significant limitation of what the newest round of economic sanctions can do to curtail North Korea's nuclear missile

development. North Korean government still has some income that is available for investing into those programs. And the international

community won't be able to really elimination that income.

So there is still progress that can be made by North Korea.

LU STOUT: So if economic sanctions won't curtail North Korea's nuclear weapons ambitions, what about a military option or a cyber option? Could a

special forces operation or targeted strike dismantle the north's weapons program?

ZHAO: It is possible that North Korea is hiding its most critical military infrastructures, including nuclear weapons and missiles into deeply buried

tunnels and other reinforced military facilities. It would be very difficult for the United States and South Korea to completely identify all

North Korean nuclear missiles and to take them out in a first strike.

So if there is any survivable North Korean nuclera programs, the consequences would be huge.

Of course, the United States and South Korea are also exploring other military options to deal with the missile threat, including cyber attack.

There this is a concept of left of launch missile defense, basically, the United States is looking at using cyber attacks to interfere with North

Korea's nuclear control system to make the missiles unable to be launched in the first place.

LU STOUT: You mention the cyber option there. I mean, could something akin to stuxnet really work on a pariah state like North Korea which is

arguably the least wired nation in the world? Could something like that be an option?

ZHAO: I think so, because even for a relatively rudimentary command and control system, a lack that in North Korea, there still needs to depend on

computers for certain parts of the command and control system. Even if they use air gap to physically isolate their electronic system, there is

still a way to jump that air gap and to use a cyber and electronic warfare capabilities to undermine the efficacy of the system.

LU STOUT: Fascinating. Now big picture here, Donald Trump wants China to directly engage with North Korea to resolve this issue. What does China

want to see from Donald Trump?

The two countries, United States and China, have very different philosophies in dealing with North Korea. And therefore, China would be

very interested to see President Trump after he comes into office to engage directly with North Korea, because based on North Korea's political system,

they only make the most important compromises at the summit meeting at the national leadership level. It's very difficult for them to make big

compromises at operational and lower level diplomatic engagements.

So if Donald Trump can recharge to North Korea, I think there is hope in China that some important deal will be made between the two countries to at

least freeze North Korea's nuclear missile development.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[08:11:33] LU STOUT: Tong Zhao speaking to me earlier from Beijing there.

Now, Donald Trump has also weighed in on the suspicion that Russian hackers tried to influence the U.S. election. Now, Trump says he has information

sabout hacking that others don't. And he says he is going to reveal that in the next few days.

Now, this follows remarks he made doubting the Russian hacker story.

But now U.S. intelligence officials say they have new evidence that Russia was indeed involved.

Now, let's get more now from Fred Pleitgen. He joins us live from Moscow.

And Fred, does the Kremlin continue to deny any involvement with the U.S. election hack?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, it certainly does. It certainly hasn't changed its position, Kristie, and what the

Kremlin is saying is they say that there's absolutely nothing to back up these claims. And they also have called them absurd in the past, as well.

And so they're not backing down from that in had any way, shape or form. And especially if you look at Russian media the past couple of days, a lot

of these statements that have been made by members of the Trump transition team, like for instance the incoming press secretary Sean Spicer, those

really are getting massive air play here in Russia, anything that seems to indicate that anybody who is going to be, or might be a member of the new

Trump administration has doubts about these hacking allegations that is something that is really showcased here in Russia.

At the same time, however, a source has told CNN that members of the intelligence community

have been able to trace some of these hacking things back to a specific keyboard using the Cyrillic language, which is obviously the language here

in Russia. So a Cyrillic keyboard. And they say analysis afterward led them to the conclusion that the Russian government was indeed behind these

hacks.

And it's interesting to see, we're looking at members of the Trump transition team that many of

them, or most of them, obviously, fully support the comments that the president-elect has been making; however, there is one member, the expert

for national security, a former CIA director, James Woolsey who now says he does believe that Russians were involved, but he's not sure whether or not

it was the top level of Russian government and whether or not they were alone.

Let's listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES WOOLSEY, FRM. CIA DIRECTOR: It looks from all the indicators that we've read about from NSA and CIA and so forth as if the Russians were

there and perhaps even principally there. It doesn't mean that there isn't somebody else in there. Donald Trump is an expert at this kind of weaving

around and attracting everybody's attention. It's exactly what he did during the campaign.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: So, are you saying he's playing us, in effect?

WOOLSEY: There is a possibility that he is a little bit, yes.

TAPPER: But is that something a president-elect should be doing on such a serious issue of national security?

WOOLSEY: Well, why not? I mean, he's not interfering with anything. He's not talking about anything classified.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: So, James Woolsey there. And, you know, as you heard he was saying about the belief that the Russians were in there, possibly primarily

in there, but many others might have been in there as well, just goes to show how murky the world of cyber security and cyber hacking is, and howe

difficult it is to prove with certainty who is behind those hacks, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah. Reportedly there is forensic evidence saying that Russia is behind it, but whether or not it was state sponsored or directed from

the very top, we still don't -- or haven't seen the definitive evidence just yet.

And what Donald Trump is doing here, how is it being interpreted there. He's playing down the election hack, so is he effectively calling for

closer ties with the Russian president?

PLEITGEN: Well, I think that's something that Donald Trump has done very openly. I mean, he has not only played down these most recent allegations,

but there have certainly been other instances, as well, where he has played down issues that the U.S. has had with Russia. If you look, for instance,

to some of the issues that Obama administration has had with the Russians regarding with conflict in Syria -- of course there were big problems

between John Kerry and Sergey Lavrov in that, bt Donald Trump consistently has been not only playing those down, but also openly calling for better

relations with Russia. There was a foreign policy speech that Trump gave before he was elected president where he openly asked wouldn't it be better

for the U.S. to have better relations with Russia?

Of course he said he would want this to be behind negotiations, or after negotiations, and see

whether or not a deal was possible or whether or not it wasn't possible. But he certainly has been very

openly saying that relations with the Russian Federation is something that he believes could be improved.

And it was interesting, also, to see when Vladimir Putin didn't expel any U.S. diplomats in

retaliation for the U.S., obviously, expelling those Russian diplomats, Vladimir Putin on Twitter calling him a smart guy. So, certainly that

does say a lot about the admiration that Donald Trump seems to have for Vladimir Putin, and certainly also seems to reflect on the fact that he

seems to want better relations with Russia in its current form, Kristie.

[08:16:19] LU STOUT: All right, Fred Pleitgen, live in Moscow for us, thank you, Fred.

And while Trump appears to be following through on his desire for closer ties between the u.s. and Russia, he is backtracking on other promises he

has made. As Tom Foreman reports, that could have a lasting impact on his upcoming presidency.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump has suggested many times he'll make his tax returns public. He hinted he'd do it in 2011.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT ELECT OF UNITED STATES: Maybe I'm going to do the tax returns when Obama does his birth certificate.

FOREMAN: He promised he'd to it in 2014.

DONALD: If I decide to run for office I'll produce my tax returns absolutely.

FOREMAN: And he dared he'd do it just months ago as his race against Hillary Clinton ridged.

TRUMP: Let her release her e-mails and I'll release my tax returns immediately.

FOREMAN: But it has never happened. The whole Trump team repeatedly retreating behind a claim tax professionals dismissed.

TRUMP: I will absolutely give my return but I'm being audited now for two or three years, so I can't do it until the audit is finished, obviously,

and I think people would understand that.

FOREMAN: Another promise in limbo. The President-elect has pledged to explain how he'll step free of his private business interests. In late

November, a spokesperson said Trump would talk to reporters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Soon, but he's just got action-packed days filled with meetings.

FOREMAN: But soon turned into nine days without a word. Then a tweet from the President-elect pushed it two more weeks down the line. I will be

holding a major news conference in New York City with my children on December 15th to discuss the fact that I will be leaving my great business

in total. And that did not happen either. Now team Trump is promising the elusive explanation will come this month, but they have not released

details or a date. And so it goes.

TRUMP: Lying Ted. Lies, oh he lies.

FOREMAN: As a candidate, he threatened to sue challengers Ted Cruz for not being a natural born citizen. Trump promised detailed documentation about

his own wife's immigration record. And he hinted the president's birth certificate even after it was produced was a fraud. Saying he'd sent a team

of his own investigators to Hawaii and that he would publicly release what they had found. Yet he came up with no credible proof for any of that and

finally acknowledged that Obama was born in the U.S.

TRUMP: He's a good man. Doing well. Long time. We've been friends for a long time.

FOREMAN: And now despite promises of a widely-open transparent administration, he is largely limiting his public statements to passing

words and photo ops, tweets, a few interviews and his own rallies.

TRUMP: Thank you very much.

FOREMAN: Of course, many of his fans love the way he says what he wishes and shoves the critics aside, but pretty soon the promises he made directly

to those voters will also be on the line, and then his follow through could matter a whole lot more.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now, shortly after his election, Donald Trump caused a stir with China after taking back congratulatory call from the president of Taiwan.

And now, there's a new source of potential tension for Beijing involving the island. Japan has decided to rename its de facto embassy in Taiwan.

The former Japan Interchange Association is now the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association.

Beijing has expressed extreme dissatisfaction of Tokyo's decision to include the word Taiwan.

Now, the manhunt is intensifying for the attacker behind the New Year's massacre in Istanbul. And coming up next right here on News Stream, we

have the latest on what we know about the suspect.

Plus, Myanmar promises to take action against police accused of brutality against Rohingya Muslims. The video that led to the investigation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:22:28] LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, you've back watching News

Stream. Now, six more people are under arrest Turkey all in connection with a New Year's attack on an Istanbul nightclub bringing the total in

custody to 14.

But the hunt goes on for this man suspected to be the shooter. A photo was given to Turkish media outlets by police and it matches this selfie taking

at Istanbul's Takhsin Square. The video comes from social media. It has not been independently verified by CNN.

Now, from more, Ian Lee joins me from Istanbul. And Ian, along with that surveillance video, we now have a selfie of the suspect, and yet it's three

days since the attack, he's still at large. What's the latest on efforts to find him?

IAN LEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, it's chilling about that video, that selfie video, is if I just look to my right here, I can

actually see the spot where it was being filmed. Now, authorities are still conducting this nationwide manhunt. Hundreds of police officers

scouring the country for him. They have his picture, they have his fingerprint. They say they will use those not only to identify him, but

also try to figure out exactly could have been helping him.

But Turkey has been under somewhat of a lockdown. A lot of security all over. Yesterday we saw special politics units in Takhsin Square in

fatigues with heavy weapons. This is an operation to find a man a lot of people are nervous about while he's still on the run. And the fact is, you

know, since he could be, as ISIS claims, one of their operatives, there's a chance that he might be trying to get to Syria. And if that's the case, he

slips into ISIS-controlled Syria, then it would be basically impossible for them to catch him.

LU STOUT: Yeah, and as the manhunt goes on to try to find him before it's too late, we know that Turkey is reeling. Turkey has been hit by this

relentless wave of violence over the last year or so. This latest attack must be raising even more serious questions about security in the country.

LEE: You know, if we go back just before this last attack happened, people were talking about how this was going to be the pajama new year, that they

he just didn't feel like they wanted to go out and celebrate because they were afraid something was going to happen. And security on the street was

ramped up to make sure that something like the attack at that nightclub wouldn't happen, but despite all that, that ISIS operative was able to kill

those people at that club and then sslip away.

And Turkey has been dealing with quite a few terrorist attacks, whether they be from ISIS or

Kurdish militants, the PKK. And here in the country, people are wondering why the government hasn't been able to stop that.

You know, ISIS has been operating in Turkey for quite some time because of the neighboring civil war in Syria. At one time, Turkey was the gateway

for militants to move in and out of Syria, although they clamped that down. ISIS still has cells in the country and Turkish police, Turkish security

forces are trying to root those out and 14 people have been detained in connection with this. They're interrogating them. But still, a lot of

work left to go.

[08:25:39] LU STOUT: Yeah, a number -- especially the people of Turkey and the key suspects still at-large. Ian Lee reporting for us live from

Istanbul, thank you.

Now, the victims and survivors of that horrific attack came from more than a dozen countries. And Sara Sidner has their stories.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Video from a party inside the upscale reign on night club the moment Istanbul entered 2017.

Just 75 minutes later, mayhem. Flashes from a gun held by a man as he begins his killing spree. First outside, shooting a police officer and

security guard, then he opened fire inside. 39 people are killed, 69 injured, the victims from all over the world, including the United States.

WILLIAM RAAK, AMERICAN VICTIM OF TURKISH NIGHTCLUB ATTACK: I got shot in the fucking leg, man. He's crazy. People came and shooting everything.

SIDNER: William Jacob Raak survived the night of terror. Seven of the nine people he entered the club with left with bullet ones. Raak, now heading

home.

RAAK: For me, I wake up in the United States, I eat breakfast. You guys wake up and have to think of this, it's so sad. And I really wish everybody

here the best.

SIDNER: But the worse was yet to come for the victims' families. 24 hours after the massacre, the funerals began this one for Fatih Cakmak, another

security guard. His mother's moans pierce the silence.

His father in shocked. His son had survived this car bomb attack three weeks ago at an Istanbul stadium, but not the nightclub massacre.

"He was one in a million. If he wasn't special, hundreds of people would not have bothered to show up here," he says.

This sorrow will be multiplied 39 times. This is just one of the families forced to say good bye to their young loved ones after the reign in night

club attack.

27 of the 39 victims were foreign nationals, including a film producer and a fashion designer from India, a beautiful 19-year old Israeli citizen with

a full life awaiting her.

A massive manhunt is now underway for the man believed to be the lone attacker. Turkish authorities say they have his fingerprints and image but

still have not caught him.

The aim of the attack, though, has come into focus as ISIS claimed responsibility, using social media, saying in part, a soldier of the brave

caliphate attacked one of the most popular nightclubs while Christians were celebrating their holiday.

But the majority killed were Muslim, many from Saudi, Arabia. The killer's ideology against the western ideals failing to change minds but succeeding

in sowing sorrow.

Sara Sidner, CNN, Istanbul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:31:59] LU STOUT: Myanmar is investigating an allegation of police brutality against the Muslim Rohingya minority. A video, posted on

YouTube, prompted the investigation. And a warning, these images are disturbing. It shows police officers beating Rohingya villagers. One

officer is recording the video as the violence plays out behind him.

And there is growing criticism of Myanmar's handling of the human rights abuse, some of that directed at Nobel Peace Prize winner and state

counselor Aung San Suu Kyi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEREK MITCHELL, FRM. U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MYANMAR: This context of decades, if not centuries, of mistrust, of this sense of Myanmar people that the

Rohingya are not only not citizens, they're illegal immigrants and potentially they are the vanguard of terrorism, this sort of anti-Muslim

attitude in the country going back decades.

This is what is necessary to solve the question. And this is what she has been trying to get at. Aung San Suu Kyi has tried to say, look, give us

some space to solve this. It requires some very sensitive understanding, but I think she does need to step up and do more to speak to the urgent and

immediate issue of the human rights of these people, and again hold these folks accountable on the ground in the video and let people in who are

objective so that we can understand really what's going on on the ground.

LU STOUT: Now, Myanmar's government says it has identified some of the officers, but is trying to track down others. And CNN has an exclusive

look at the Rohingya, including the one image activists hope will finally get the world to take notice of their condition. That's coming up on

Amanpour, 7:00 Tuesday in London, 6:00 p.m. Wednesday here in Hong Kong, only on CNN.

In Israel, police have opened a corruption probe into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's activities. And here you can see investigators

visiting his official residents on Monday. They grilled the Israeli leader for three hours over claims that he may have illegally received benefits

from businessmen.

Mr. Netanyahu has denied the allegations, dismissing them as, quote, nothing.

For the latest on this, I am joined by CNN's Oren Liebermann. He is live from Jerusalem.

And Oren, just how did Mr. Netanyahu find himself had on the wrong side of a criminal probe?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, has been a long time in the making. The attorney general, when he released a statement

after that questioning that you saw that police call pull into there for the prime minister's residence, the attorney general said this all started

back in July, so this has been almost six months, but it was only an examination. Police and the attorney general didn't have enough evidence

to move from an examination to a criminal investigation to actually suspect that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had committed a crime.

That changed, according to the attorney general, about a month ago when they got evidence that substantiated a criminal investigation. And that

officially started, as you saw those police pull into the prime minister's residence and question him for three hours.

Now, police and the attorney general won't say much about what Netanyahu is suspected of doing, only that the suspicion of the crime relates to moral

integrity and that he is suspected of receiving benefits from businessmen. They won't say more than that. They're concerned about biasing the

investigation in one way or another.

Netanyahu has repeatedly said this is all nothing. It will be nothing, because there is nothing. His latest response coming a short time ago on

Facebook. This is what he posted. He says, "accusation of forbidden election financing, nothing. Accusation of fixing the primaryresults,

nothing. Accusation of receiving benefits abroad and funding flights, nothing."

He also rhetorically wondered if he would get an apology from the media. There's been a tremendous amount of speculation about what those charges or

what the suspicions there might be.

Again, the attorney general remaining very quiet there.

Kristie, it's worth remembering that Netanyahu has before the subject of a criminal investigation, that during his first team in the late-90s. That

led to no indictments, no charges. Netanyahu predicting the same will happen here again.

[08:35:47] LU STOUT: And then that just now Facebook post, the prime minister dismissing the latest allegations.

Oren, what is this new corruption probe mean for Mr. Netanyahu and his political future?

LIEBERMANN: At the moment, it has no effect. Under Israeli law, Netanyahu doesn't have to step down or resign until and he is convicted and until

that conviction is upheld all the way through Israel's legal system all the way up to the Israeli high court.

Now, if he is indicted and the indictments are on serious charges, he will face tremendous political and public pressure to step down. But it's

important to remember we're not there yet. This is just the beginning of a criminal investigation. A number of prime ministers and other Israeli

politicians have been the subject of criminal investigations that went nowhere. There were no indictments, no charges, Netanyahu predicting

that's what will happen here.

The opposition leaders and opposition politicians are urging the attorney general to move quickly on this, because it relates to the prime minister

and therefore relates to the entire state of Israel. But still, this could take weeks, maybe even months, or longer, until we know if Netanyahu will

be charged with a crime here.

LU STOUT: All right, CNN's Oren Liebermann reporting live from Jerusalem. Thank you.

Now, you're watching News Stream. And still ahead on the program, bargains before Brexit. Now, some analysts say now is the time to shop up a storm

before the UK's big move.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back..

Now, if you're a bargain hunter in Britain, there is probably no better time to shop. Retailers are offering big discounts but they're not likely

to last for long, that's because Brexit is looming and some analysts believe prices will rise as the year goes on.

Isa Soares reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISA SOARES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDNET: 50, 60, as much as 70 percent off. Pretty attractive bargains that have many people here making the most

of what's on offer. In fact, in the last few days, Brits have spent an estimated $9 billion. That's very good news for retailers, but shoppers

will soon see their spending bubbles burst as Brexit pushes prices up.

Well, already we are seeing the impact. Brits will have to pay 11 percent more for an Apple iPhone.

Why? Because of this. Over the past six months, sterling has been fluctuating wildly. For example, this 10 pound note has been worth

anywhere between $12 to as much as $15. And it's these fluctuates coupled with a of clarity, a lack of certainty over a Brexit plan, which makes it

very difficult for retailers to protect themselves against any potential losses.

RICHARD HYMAN, RETAIL ANALYST: I think it's going to be extremely difficult for retailers to protect themselves against price rises and

against the impact of a devalued sterling. If you an I trade side by side on the high street in competition, my currency hedging runs out three

months before yours does. I put my prices up, guess where my customers are going to go. I think it is going to be extraordinarily difficult to

make price rises stick.

SOARES: The UK also relies heavily on imports, clothes made in Southeast Asia, technology from China, imports which could become more expensive.

Currently, the UK enjoys cheaper trade tariffs as part of being in the EU. If the country fails to reach the right deal with the bloc, it will have to

use World Trade Organization rule, which come with higher tariffs.

A bottle of wine could set you back an extra 14 percent. And some analysts are predicting it will cost you an additional 12 percent to be on trend.

But are shoppers enjoying the January sales aware of the possible increases?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have noticed prices seem to be creeping up by some (inaudible) the shops for certain.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of tech, food seems to be creeping up a little bit. Household bills not at the moment, I haven't noticed, but yeah,

certainly things on the high street.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Given uncertainty, prices to certainly fluctuate in some ways. I expected us to be a bit worse off.

SOARES: Cautious words from Brits who now have no say on what deal their country may get in Brexit negotiations.

Isa Soares, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now, the hand drawn comic strip Old Master Q is well loved in Hong Kong and throughout Asia. And on New Yera's Alfonso Wong, the creator

of the iconic character, passed away at age 93. Wong was inspired by Hong Kong life and started drawing the comic back in the 1960s.

Old Master Q, also known as (inaudible), is one of the longest running comics in Asia. It documented the changes in Chinese society and oftentimes

commented on current events through witty depictions of people. It gradually became a collective memory of Chinese communities around the

world.

His son continued the series after Wong retired in the 1990s.

And before we go, an incredible moment caught on camera of one brother rescuing another. Home surveillance video captured 2-year-old twins in the

United States trying to climb into the draws of a dresser. As you can see, the furniture, oh my goodness, it topples

over trapping one of the boys underneath. He is pinned. He can't get out. And moments later, the boy's brother comes to the rescue.

Now first, the little toddler he try to lift the dresser, but it is too heavy. And then he figures it out. He pushes it far enough to allow his

twin to roll out.

Incredible save. Their mother says both boys are remarkably doing OK. What a story of brotherly love there.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. But don't go anywhere. World Sport with Christina Macfarlane is next.

END